Removing odorous gasses released during defecation from the bathroom area is generally accomplished by venting the entire contents of the bathroom to the attic or out of the building entirely. Although such room venting can eliminate odors permeating the room after a period of time, room venting does nothing to address the problem of eliminating the spread of the odor throughout the room. It would be a benefit, therefore, to have a venting device that could be utilized in conjunction with a venting assembly that could capture and direct odorous bathroom gasses out through a venting system prior to the spread of the gasses throughout the bathroom. It would be a further benefit if the device could capture the odorous gasses prior to the escape of the gas from the commode bowl. It would also be a benefit if the device were easily installed on existing commodes and was adapted for use with a vent line running on either side of the commode. In addition, because a venting system is only effective if used, it would also be desirable to have a switch that could be connected to the venting system that activated the venting system automatically once a person sat on the commode seat.